• Friday, March 29, 2024
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Insecurity: Amotekun assures Oyo citizens of protection

Amotekun deploys 1,500 officers in Ondo ahead of Christmas

The commandant of the Amotekun Corps, in Oyo State, Olayinka Olayanju, has reassured residents of the state that the corps’ commitment to protecting them from external invasions.

Olayanju, a retired army colonel, gave the assurance following reports that bandits who were being dislodged from Zamfara State by the ongoing military onslaught are heading southwards. He said the outfit’s well trained personnel were patrolling boundaries of the state aggressively to prevent bandits and criminals in whatever hue from relocating to the state.

While commending Governor Seyi Makinde for providing the necessary material and moral support to the corps the commandant said: “We got intelligence reports that bandits and hoodlums maybe heading southward as a result of military activities in Zamfara State. I want to reassure Oyo citizens that we are aware and our men are already on the lookout for the bandits, other criminals and strange faces, especially at our boundaries.

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“We are at alert and our men are carrying out operations regarding this at Irepo, which is the boundary with Ogun and Kwara States and the Republic of Benin, to make sure that the bandits do not relocate to our state. They will be stopped. Our men will pick them up. We won’t allow criminals to relocate here. We are carrying out confidence-building patrols at Irepo, Olorunsogo, Oorelope, Iwajowa, Ibarapa Central and North LGAs,” he stated.

Olayanju also said that the corps was working in tandem with agencies within the state and South-West Amotekun commanders to ensure peace and stability so that citizens can go about their lawful duties

According to him, since its establishment last year, Amotekun has brought relative peace and stability to the state compared to the same period the previous year. “There has been a considerable difference with where we are now and where we were two years ago. Through our security strategies, we have been able to bring to the barest minimum incidences of suspected herdsmen attack in Oyo State. I want to commend the people of Oyo for standing behind Amotekun and giving us their unalloyed support. Without their support we wouldn’t have gone this far,” the commandant noted.